(Reuters) -Paramount Global said on Monday it was selling Simon & Schuster to KKR & Co for $1.62 billion in an all-cash deal, marking the end of a years-long attempt to sell the book publisher.

Shares of the company rose nearly 7% in trading after the bell after Paramount also beat estimates for quarterly revenue.

The media company has been trying to offload the publisher after a federal judge blocked its $2.2 billion deal to sell it to Penguin Random House last year.

The other bidders for Simon & Schuster included News Corp-owned HarperCollins and investor Richard Hurowitz, Reuters had previously reported.

Paramount reported second-quarter revenue of $7.62 billion, compared with analysts' average estimate of $7.43 billion, according to Refinitiv data.

(Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)